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Matt Clackson
Matt Clackson
	Clackson with the Hershey Bears in 2012
Born	April 26, 1985 (age 39); Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Right
Played for	Philadelphia Phantoms; Adirondack Phantoms; Chicago Wolves; Hershey Bears; Portland Pirates
NHL draft	215th overall, 2005; Philadelphia Flyers
Playing career	2008–2013

Matthew Clackson (born April 26, 1985) is a Canadian-born American former professional ice hockey right winger who played six seasons in the American Hockey League (AHL) for five different teams. His father, Kim Clackson, played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Quebec Nordiques.

Playing career

Clackson attended Peters Township High School in McMurray, Pennsylvania, and played for the school's varsity ice hockey team, winning two Pennsylvania State AA Ice Hockey Championships. He was a teammate of NHLer Christian Hanson at Peters Township.^[1] After high school, he played two seasons of Junior A with the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League (USHL) and was selected 215th overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft by the Philadelphia Flyers.

Following his draft, he spent three seasons with Western Michigan University of the NCAA circuit. After his junior season, he decided to forgo his senior year by signing with the Flyers on March 19, 2008. That same day, he was assigned to the Philadelphia Phantoms of the American Hockey League (AHL);^[2] he played two games with the AHL team to close out the 2008–09 season. Clackson then played three full seasons with the Philadelphia/Adirondack Phantoms, re-signing with the Flyers following the 2009–10 season.^[2]

On June 7, 2011, Clackson was packaged into a trade that sent him, a 2012 third round draft pick and future considerations, to the Phoenix Coyotes, in exchange for goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov.^[3] Failing to come to terms with the Coyotes on a new contract, he became an unrestricted free agent on July 1. Several months later, he was invited to the Vancouver Canucks on a tryout basis during the team's training camp.^[2]

On July 14, 2012, Clackson signed a one-year deal with the Washington Capitals. He will earn $525,000 at the NHL level and $75,000 at the AHL level.^[4]

On April 2, 2013, he was traded from Washington to the Phoenix Coyotes in return of Joel Rechlicz.

NHL video explanation

During the 2011-12 pre-season, Clackson was illegally hit from behind by Calgary Flames forward Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond. In handing down a five-game suspension against Letourneau-Leblond, Brendan Shanahan, the new head of NHL discipline, posted on the NHL website video of the hit on Clackson to illustrate his ruling - the first of what would become Shanahan's trademark video explanations.^[5]

Career statistics

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2001–02	Pittsburgh Hornets	18U AAA	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Pittsburgh Hornets	18U AAA	64	22	22	44	169	—	—	—	—	—
2002–03	Peters Township High School	HSPA	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2003–04	Chicago Steel	USHL	42	5	4	9	108	5	0	1	1	8
2004–05	Chicago Steel	USHL	56	10	15	25	270	8	0	2	2	26
2005–06	Western Michigan University	CCHA	34	1	1	2	52	—	—	—	—	—
2006–07	Western Michigan University	CCHA	36	0	8	8	80	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Western Michigan University	CCHA	35	3	3	6	87	—	—	—	—	—
2007–08	Philadelphia Phantoms	AHL	2	0	0	0	19	—	—	—	—	—
2008–09	Philadelphia Phantoms	AHL	80	3	6	9	263	4	0	0	0	4
2009–10	Adirondack Phantoms	AHL	60	2	4	6	174	—	—	—	—	—
2010–11	Adirondack Phantoms	AHL	62	1	3	4	118	—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Chicago Wolves	AHL	43	1	1	2	193	1	0	0	0	2
2012–13	Hershey Bears	AHL	19	1	2	3	36	—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Portland Pirates	AHL	4	0	0	0	30	—	—	—	—	—
AHL totals			270	8	16	24	833	5	0	0	0	6